The temperatures have been diving into the negatives, which are completely expected for the beginning of January, and the Arctic winds have made things a little miserable. Saturday was the trout opener on lakes within the Boundary Waters and I started off the year with a skunker. In my defense, we could only fish for a couple of hours and the only bites we had were from Jack Frost.
Anytime you take a 40-degree drop in the temperature over the course of two days you can expect fishing to be slow, but I was a little surprised to see no action at all. We hiked into Daniels Lake from the Clearwater Road and were pretty shocked to see that we were the only anglers on the lake that morning. There was one other guy who showed up just as we were packing it up and the Minnesota DNR Conservation Officers made an appearance as well, but it was a far cry from the usual scene on opening day. The DNR guys we spoke with said there were not too many people out fishing at all. Usually there are 20 people on the lake by 8:00 a.m. but not this year.
For now, I am still pounding nails full-time so my fishing adventures are limited to the weekends. It becomes a bit of a chore to keep the minnows alive all week but it is worth the extra effort. Our mudroom is kept at 45 degrees and a bubbler in an insulated five-gallon bucket is just big enough to keep a couple dozen minnows happy. I have to change 2/3 of the water every couple of days and remove any floaters as soon as they go belly up to keep the water clean. Rainbows keep a little easier than shiners or suckers, but I usually have a mix of all three.
Hiking into the “B-Dub” in the winter months creates a whole new set of obstacles. Ice fishing is hard enough and the added difficulty of “carry-in” fishing is just that much harder.
The best advice I can give to someone attempting to fish this way is to pack as little as possible and avoid sweating at all costs. Your body will generate heat very easily when wearing winter clothing and even the simplest activities will create sweat. How many times have you stopped to help dig your buddy’s snowmobile out of the salad and realized you broke a sweat in less than five minutes? It is very easy to do and very difficult to get rid of.
Once your body stops exerting extra energy the sweat becomes cold and can cause hypothermia. No joke, especially when you are a half an hour hike into the woods.
Winter clothing is not designed to breathe so any moisture on your skin is trapped and will eventually make you very cold. The most important thing to do is wear multiple layers. While you are hiking into the woods, dress light and when you are staring motionless into a hole in the ice, put on those extra layers.
Even though the 30-minute hike into Daniels is flat and relatively easy to walk, I was not even wearing a hat or a heavy coat on that five-degree morning. I sweat easily and this is what I have to do to regulate an even temperature. I am not saying this will work for you but it helped me stay dry until we were ready to fish. Good luck on the ice and remember that a warm and dry angler is a happy angler.
Cory Christianson, a graduate of the University of Iowa, has worked as a fishing guide on the Gunflint Trail since 2000. If you have any fishing reports or stories to share, send an email to: christiansoncory@hotmail.com or call 218-388-0315.
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